AWC FOREIGN DESK, SEPTEMBER 2026
NEW YORK — The annual September 11 commemoration at Ground Zero is expanding its solemn tradition. Historically, the ceremony featured six moments of silence to mark the critical, fatal milestones of the 2001 terrorist attacks—the impacts on the World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon, the crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and the collapse of both towers.
A seventh moment of silence is being permanently added to honor the thousands of first responders, recovery workers, and local residents who have since died from toxic exposure. In the years following the tragedy, exposure to the dangerous chemical mix, ash, and rubble at Ground Zero led to fatal respiratory diseases and cancers, a health crisis whose death toll now rivals and exceeds that of the original attack. The new tribute ensures those who lost their lives in the lingering aftermath are formally remembered alongside those lost on that tragic day.
#NeverForget #GroundZero #September11 #HonorAndRemember #911Memorial
